LICENCE and MAIN STRATEGY FACTS IN OVERVIEW

LICENCE and MAIN STRATEGY FACTS IN OVERVIEW

HISTORY

1930

• Founded in 1932     Kristiansen G.   ONLY THE BEST IS GOOD ENOUGH  

• Leg GOdt ( play well)   Latin : put together

• 1935 FIRST Product in wood (Duck)

1940

• Due to  WW II factorxy burned down: new product WOODEN BRICKS (1946)   40 empl
• First injection moulding for toy  1947                              Export wooden toys to India    50empl (1948)
• First platic bricks 1949   only sold in DK

1950

• New products with more bricks and sets were put on market
• 1952 Ole ( now junior partner ) expands
• LEGO BICKS was bron as an official product… (1953)
• 1954 LEGO IS AN OFFICILA TM
• 1956 LEGO GmbH
• 1957 LEGO SCHWEIZ
• PATENTED IN 1958  new machines , new production line,  increase of quality  
• 1959  LEGO in F  UK  B   S    MARKET ANALYSIS DEPARTMENT

1960

• LEGO F NL   1960  finish with wooden toys ( FIRE )
• PRE SCHOOL PRODUCTS    1961
• 1961 Start in US and Canada         LEGO IT
• 1963 Measurement line in DK
• 1962 Sales Australia SGP  HK  JP Morocco

1. PRESS STATMENT IN 1963 Unlimited play potential
2. For girls and for boys
3. Fun for every age
4. Year-round play
5. Healthy, quiet play
6. Long hours of play
7. Development, imagination, creativity
8. The more LEGO, the greater the value
9. Extra sets available
10. Quality in every Detail

• LEGO A     Swiss becomes INTERLEGO AG
• PARTNERSHIP WITH SAMSONITE  JUMBO BRICKS    1964 end ind 1972
• Sales Lebanon 1964
• New Production in D Planed  
• Sales in E  (65)
• 66  Batterxy diven Train
• 1968 FIRTS LEGOLAND BILLUND  
• DUPLO Luanch  tested in Swiss   internationnaly
• 1969 Firts Film     Leogo done of PVC

1970

• 1971 first sales to far east
• 2nd factory in DK
• 1972 licence ends with Samsonite
• 1973  LEGOLAND D opens ( Lübeck)
• The group expands   LEGO USA   LEGO Overseas  LEGO Futura    
• SALES Eastern Europe  ( H CK )
• 1977 LEO TECHNIC  DUPLO becomes a stand alone in the Group
• 1978  Nihon LEGO KK (J)  
• DEveloppement enorme de toutes la games Pendant les années  70 en general ¨

1980

• 70 pct of all Western Euriope kids haver bircks at home
• Plant for Decoration in Swiss 1981  Closes in 2001
• SCALA IS CLOSES ( launched in 79 ) $
• 1984  COOP with Mc Donald       TYCO for American markets is launched
• Expand to Korea and South Amercia
• Changes in the Groupe   The educational products department changes its name to LEGO Dacta. The word "dacta" derives from the Greek word "didactic", meaning "the study of the purpose, means and substance of learning and the learning process".
  Dr. Seymour Papert becomes LEGO Professor of Learning Research.
  The first LEGO Dacta Centre opens in LEGOLAND (renamed TECHNIC LAND after a couple of years). 

1990

• 1990 The LEGO Group is now 10 largest toy manufacturers - the only one in Europe (the others are American and Japanese).
• Around 1000 mulding machines  
• LEGO Malaysia is established.   LEGO Publishing is renamed LEGO Licensing.
  The LEGOLAND Band issues an LP. Professor Xavier Gilbet, IMD, Switzerland, is appointed LEGO Professor, Business Dynamics.
• 1992 a large scale introduction of LEGO products is made in the People's Republic of China.
  First LEGO Show in Russia.

• 1994  LEGO Mexico is established.
  First ever TV campaign in China.

• 1995 LEGO Belgium and LEGO Netherlands become LEGO Benelux.

• 1996 
  www.lego.com is launched.
  LEGOLAND Windsor, the first LEGOLAND family park outside Denmark, opens on March 29.

• 1997  The names PRIMO and DUPLO are changed to LEGO PRIMO and LEGO DUPLO on January 1st.

• 1998  For the first time ever, LEGO Group faces a deficit.

• 1999 LEGO World Shop opens on the internet.

• The first LEGO products-only store opens in the Bluewater center in Dartford, London, England.

2000

• LEGO & Steven Spielberg Moviemaker Set (LEGO Studios)
• The company mission and fundamental beliefs are being revised to "Children are our role models..."
• partnership deal with Warner Bros. relating to the launch of LEGO Harry Potter’s 
• 2001 BACK IN BUDGET AFTER 1999 FAIL  Deficit is again turned to profit for LEGO Group.
• 2002  The brand statement "Play On" replaces "Just Imagine...".
  LEGO DUPLO brand is replaced by the LEGO EXPLORE brand covering all pre-school activities
• Leogland Germany OPENS
• 2004  In January, the LEGO Group announces the results of 2003 – a huge deficit results :  LEGO Ferrari    + The DUPLO trade mark is relaunched as a result of consumer requests.
• 2005   The LEGOLAND parks are sold to Merlin Entertainments. The parent company of the LEGO Group – KIRKBI – buys a share of Merlin Entertainments. Today KIRKBI owns approx. one third of Merlin. The LEGO Group posts a profit again. The company is back on track.
• 2006  The LEGO Group announces plans to outsource major parts of production to external partners.  CEO Jørgen Vig Knudstorp publicly announces  Shared Vision – an action plan for the company until 2010.
• 2007 + 2008 license agreement with Lucasfilm Inc.  LEGO Indiana Jones  + The LEGO Star Wars™.
• 2009The LEGO Group is now the world’s fifth largest toy manufacturer in terms of sales. Warner Bros. and the LEGO Group announce plans to develop the first-ever feature film based on LEGO bricks and icons.
• The LEGO Group announces a multi-year partnership with Disney Consumer Products obtaining exclusive rights to construction toys based on the entire portfolio of Disney and Disney Pixar properties.
• A completely new product line – LEGO Games – is launched. The line consists of a series of board games that can be played by the whole family. Pilot launch in the UK and Germany. Rest of world to follow.

FROM 2010

2010  Online game LEGO Universe launches.

2011 The LEGO Group is now the world’s third largest toy manufacturer in terms of sales.  LEGOLAND Florida LAUNCHED

2012  Lego FRIENDS for girls is launched  “Step Up”: Organizational change in order to prepare the LEGO Group for future growth and to make it more adaptable and competitive. Corporate Management changes from 6 to 22 persons.
LEGO Universe closes as well as DesignbyME, because the two product lines are not sustainable.
LEGO Education becomes a separate subsidiary under LEGO A/S.

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